Indian has taken its Challenger and given it a full-dress makeover.

Indian Motorcycle is really only nine years old (if you discount the history dating back to 1901 before Polaris scooped it up for what turned out to be quite the bargain), and as such is not tethered to any ideals of what a traditional cruiser needs to be.

The water-cooled PowerPlus 108 (1768cc) V-twin first saw the light of day in the Challenger of 2020, a motorcycle that’s already proven to be a massive hit with performance cruiser riders across the globe and was the inaugural winner of the MotoAmerica King of The Baggers Championship in 2020 in the hands of the uber-talented Tyler O’Hara.

That motor has been deployed this time for use in this new Pursuit Limited, joining the Challenger, the Scout cruiser line and FTR naked bikes as wearers of the Indian water-cooled jacket.

The Pursuit is Indian’s first real crack at the performance full dresser (is there such a thing?), which is an area Harley-Davidson has been dominant in with their Road Glide. You can get two versions of the Pursuit—the base Limited with a few lashings of chrome at $29,999 and if you shell out an extra grand, you’ll pick up the Dark Horse version for $30,999.

On top of that, there’s the Premium Package for $3000 that our test bikes were fitted with at the launch. The Premium Package gives you electronically adjustable preload for the rear suspension (which means you’ll have to ask your significant other how much they weigh *shock*), Smart Lean Technology, which is Indian’s Cornering ABS and dynamic traction-control system mitigated by a Bosch six-axis IMU, integrated driving lights and heated rider and passenger seats.

Under the wraps of the Pursuit’s expansive bodywork sit a claimed 128 lb-ft of torque and 122 all-American horses from its 1768cc V-twin. Unlike the Road Glide, the Indian is completely water-cooled and the front of its motor is hidden by a massive radiator, flanked on either side by aero bodywork that houses handy wind flaps to allow cooling air to the rider’s legs.

You’re dealing with a motorcycle that weighs a massive 882 pounds dry, with a wet weight of 925 pounds and a six-gallon tank of gas and the assorted trunk and hardware exclusive to this model.

That’s one big bike you’re riding, but the weight is centered well. I’m not going to BS you and say it’s “light on its feet” or “the weight disappears when you ride it,” but the Pursuit is surprisingly nimble for such a beast. You need to be careful, especially on corner entries under brakes, as that massive girth moves onto the front tire for turning, but you can hustle the Pursuit harder than you’d think at first glance.

The Pursuit will pull away nicely from standstill, barely at engine tick-over point, and the torque comes in smoothly with hardly a dip until you’re past the 4000-rpm range. At that point, you’re better off shifting because you’re in the meat of the torque and this is not an engine you need to rev out to gain the best performance.

You’ve got 31 degrees of ground clearance to play with—it’s not much—but if you plan your corners well, that’s all you’ll need. Scraping the floorboards only happens when you either cock up your corner or you’re trying to show off, and they’re finished so nicely, why would you want to grind them into the road?

Part of the Premium Package, we got to play around with the electronically adjustable preload feature as part of the glorious Ride Command suite during our launch ride. You’ve got 5.1 inches of front and 4.5 inches of rear-wheel travel at your disposal—the base suspension settings are on the plush side—and overcompensating somewhat to make my ride a bit stiffer ensured a more taught chassis for more fun in the corners at the expense of a little highway comfort. This sharper in-corner behavior revealed another layer to the Pursuit’s personality, with a few riders on the launch properly hammering it through the corners thanks to the confidence the electronic suspension gave them.

Most of what makes a Pursuit a Pursuit comes in the form of the luggage. In total, you’ve got 35 gallons of storage to play with. The trunk will happily hold two full-face helmets and the side cases will take a backpack each, so you’ll be good for at least one night away on the Pursuit with your significant other.

The trunk’s all-encompassing backrest has beautifully finished padding and stitching, and two rear speakers for the passenger, and don’t forget on the Premium Package you’ve got heated Touring Comfort front and rear seats.

The comfort on the Pursuit is outstanding—while I only completed one day in the saddle, big multi-day trips would be no problem, as the seat’s foam doesn’t sink through after an hour onboard and retains enough firmness to remain comfortable long after you’ve decided it’s time to stop.

Aiding here is the massive adjustable windscreen, but, at least for me, I couldn’t get a comfortable position, as the screen either cut my vision in half or it would buffet my head excessively. Screens are perhaps the most personal thing on a motorcycle, and I think I’d almost go for no screen at all if it were an option so at least my chest would take most of the wind blast. However, when the screen is at its highest, the ride is incredibly quiet (as long as you duck down a touch, so your helmet isn’t buffeting).

The Ride Command suite houses Apple CarPlay, so, for that, it automatically goes near to the top of my favorite dashes. However, if you’re one of those dirty Android users, the Ride Command suite is still easy to figure out thanks to the massive seven-inch touchscreen dash.

As for extra storage, there’s two handy glove compartments on either side of the dash with the right one housing a USB outlet for device charging.

This is the kind of motorcycle you need a week, an open road to the middle of nowhere and nothing in your diary to properly figure out. At first glance the Indian Pursuit is extremely difficult to fault, which it ought to be considering the price. If you’re happy knocking $30K out of your bank account, make sure you throw down that extra $3000 so you’ve got the Premium Package and you will have a touring motorcycle that will last you long after you’ve called riding a day. CN

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